All Photos: Thomas M. Jergel
ExcITEd
‘NordHunt was social – it made it easier to get to know the other students,’ says first-year student Kine Olsen. She played NordHunt together with Jonathan Moe, Joakim Berg and Iris Martinsen.
Gamified study start The bachelor's students in media technology become acquainted with student life through the smartphone game NordHunt – developed by students.
‘I
t was completely natural for us to look into how we could introduce students to the idea of games as serious and useful, since the students will be creating such ‘serious games’ themselves during the course of their studies. The plan was for the students to use the game to become better acquainted with each other, the academic staff and the campus,’ says Trond Olav Skevik, lecturer at Camp Steinkjer at Nord University.
Therefore, when Excited wanted to further develop the game, they had no doubt that the students were the right persons to carry out the task in the best possible manner. The new version, NordHunt, was developed by and for students. Despite some technical challenges, the first-year students found the game to be a positive thing. They liked the fact that it triggered their competitive instinct and created a social arena, also outside the
auditorium and classrooms. ‘This was a relevant game to use at the start of our studies, since we’re going to study games and entertainment technology,’ says student Joakim. The game comprises several parts, for example quizzes that had to be found by physically looking for QR codes. ‘We learnt to find our way around campus, since NordHunt had posts everywhere, and the quizzes included topics on the programme student associations and the teachers,’ say the students. For other tasks, the team had to put their heads and mobile phones together to find an answer. The final post was at the 'base’ in the canteen, where you were likely to meet others on the same mission. This was a good way of starting a conversation and new friendships.
Excited Centre for Excellent IT Education
ExcITEd - Centre for Excellent IT Education Affiliated to NTNU and Nord University ExcITEd wants to make Norway a world leader in innovative IT education and make IT an attractive study option for both genders.
> www.ntnu.edu/excited
THE SFU MAGAZINE |
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